Sofa-bed

ABSTRACT

The sofa-bed consists of a base frame supporting convertible seating-and-bedding means in the form of three sections, - a seat section, a back-rest section and a rear section - hingeably interconnected and pivotably and slidably supported on the base frame. The sofa bed can be of any suitable width or may be provided in units connectable together side-by-side. Detachable arms are provided which may also be used to form a headboard in the bedding configuration.

United States Patent 11 1 Wright Feb. 25, 1975 [54] SOFA-BED 2,793,685 5/1957 Spitz 297/440 2,997,724 8/1961 Heumann 5/18 R 1 Invent Jerauld George fl 1O Wren 3,060,460 10/1962 BrOyies 5/18 R Rd60ttawm0ntflr10, Canada 3,239,854 3/1966 Freelander 5/355 [22] Filed: Sept 13,1973 3,357,030 12/1967 George 5/18R Appl. No.: 396,772

Foreign Application Priority Data Sept. 18, 1972 Canada 151957 US. Cl 5/37 C, 5/17, 5/38, 297/118 Int. Cl. A471: 17/14 Field of Search 5/17, 18, 37 R, 37 B, 37 C, 5/38; 297/118 I References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 10/1954 Brahm et al. 5/58 X 1/1956 Schneller 5/38 Primary ExaminerCasmir A. Nunberg Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Christopher Robinson [57] ABSTRACT The sofa-bed consists of a base frame supporting convertible seating-and-bedding means in the form of three sections, a seat section, a back-rest section and a rear section hingeably interconnected and pivotably and slidably supported on the base frame. The sofa bed can be of any suitable width or may be provided in units connectable together side-by-side.

I Detachable arms are provided which may also be used to form a headboard in the bedding configuration.

44 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures PATENTED FEB 2 51975 sum 2 0r 5 PATENTED FEB25 I975 SHEET 5 OF 5 Hmh h SOFA-BED BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to improvements in convertible furniture, i.e., furniture which can perform a dual function, alternatively providing either a bed, or seating means such as a chair or sofa.

2. Description of the Prior Art Convertible furniture of this type has been known for may years: numerous arrangements and variations of such furniture have been proposed, but most known designs have serious drawbacks such as expense, complexity, or poor appearance. For example sofa beds are known in which the bed frame, mattress etc., are stowed in folded compact form beneath the cushions of the sofa when the latter is used for seating purposes. When required for use as a bed the sofa cushions are removed and the bed framework is unfolded and deployed in a horizontal fashion. The appearance of such sofabeds in the seating configuration is generally very good, but such sofa beds tend tobe excessively heavy, are expensive to produce, and are somewhat unsightly when deployed in the bedding configuration. Allied to the last mentioned drawback, where, as is usual, the sofa is provided with arms, is the disadvantage that the arms of the sofa present an obstruction to a person using'the bed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a sofa bed which includes, in addition to the normal upholstered seat and back-rest portions of the sofa, a further generally planar upholstered rear portion connected to the upper edge of the back-rest of the sofa. When the sofa bed is in seating configuration this further portion extends in a generally upright plane and faces rearwardly of the sofa. The seat portion of the sofa is movable horizontally forward of the sofa and its rear edge is pivotally connected to the lower end of the back-rest. Thus when the seat is drawn horizontally outward to the front of thesofa the back-rest and rear sections pivot downwards into a horizontal position so'that these three upholstered portions together constitute a bed.

Where the sofa bed is provided with arms, these are preferably detachably mounted so that they can be removed when the sofa bed is deployed in its bedding configuration. Preferably means are provided for reattaching the sofa arms to form a headboard arrangement for the bed.

To accommodate movements from the seating configuration to the bedding configuration, the rear section is pivotally supported transversely at the back of the sofa bed. However such pivotal connection is preferably disengageable so that the three movable sections can be detached as a unit from the remainder of the sofa. This is a considerable advantage in respect of shipping and storage.

It will be appreciated that when the sofa bed is in the bedding configuration, a very great horizontal force would require to be applied to the seating portion to restore the sofa bed to its seating configuration. This is because the rear and backrest portions are substantially co-planar and yet the pivotal connection between these portions must be raised as the sofa bed is restored to the seating configuration. Preferably therefore my sofa bed includes means to initiate raising of this pivotal axis so that'after it has been initiated a moderate horizontal force applied to the extended seating section will be sufficient to restore the sofa to its seating configuration.

As used herein the term sofa bed is not intended to be restricted to a seating arrangement of any particular width or indeed to a seating arrangement designed to accommodate more than one person. On the contrary it is intended to encompass any such configuration of convertible furniture, irrespective of width, which comes within the scope of the appended claims.

I BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will further be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a sofa bed in accordance with my invention shown in the seating configuration, with parts removed to reveal hidden detail, the sofa bed also being illustrated in bedding configuration in broken lines;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the sofa bed shown in seating configuration with one arm removed;

FIG. -3 is an enlarged detailed view of a portion of FIG. 2; 7

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 44 in .FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a side elevation of the sofa bed in bedding configuration, shown with the arms removed, and partly in section;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 6-6 in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is an underneath plan view of the sofa bed in bedding configuration;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken on the line 88 in FIG. 9; and

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary view to an enlarged scale illustrating a means for interconnecting two such sofabed units shown in FIGS. 1 to 7.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT As shown in the drawings, and particularly in FIGS. 1, 2 and 5, the sofa bed comprises a base frame 10 upon which is supported a convertible seating and bedding means generally indicated by the arrow 11. Each end of the sofa bed is provided with a detachable arm 12 (only one arm being shown in FIGS. 1 and 2). The sofa bed may be fabricated in any suitable material, the embodiment shown in the drawings being made substan tially entirely from plywood, except for the padded and the sofa positioned in a generally upright manner as shown in FIG. 2.

Each of the seat, back-rest, and rear sections is provided with a corresponding upholstered cushion l6, l7 and 18 respectively. The seat and back-rest sections are pivotally interconnected as at 19 on a transverse horizontal pivot axis, and the back-rest and rear sections are similarly interconnected on a pivot axis 20.

In the embodiment illustrated, the back-rest section 14 and the rearsection 15 are each fabricated from a suitably dimensioned plywood sheet, the 'pivot axis 19 and 20 being formed by piano hinges to provide rigidity to'the structure.

The seat section 13 includes on its underside a pair of rearwardlyextending tapered stringers 21, and has attached to its forward edge a downwardly extending padded board 22 which screens the front of the base frame as shown in FIG. 1.

1 The seat section includes a removable panel 13a best seen in FIGS. 1 and 5, which inludes transverse front and rear frame members 13b and 130 respectively connected on their undersides to shallow, U-shaped, longitudinal supports (13d, and interconnected by closely spaced longitudinally extending lengths of resilient webbing material 13c).

The stringers 21 which support the seat section 13 upon the base 10, are of tapering form, and extend rearwardly a substantial distance beyond the rear edge of the seat section, as is shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, to provide support for the forward portion of the back-rest section when the convertible means is in the bedding configuration (FIG. 5). The stringers 21 may be interconnected transversely at their forward ends adjacent the board 22 by a dowelling rod 21a, and are interconnected near their rear ends by a dowelling rod 21b, (see FIGS. 5 and 7).

Alternatively, the board 22 may be omitted and downward extensions on legs (not shown) may be pr0- vided at the forward ends of the stringers 21 to provide foot means for the front end of the seat section 13 when extended forward in the bedding configuration. Alternatively the legs may be retractably mounted adjacent each stringer 21. The stringers themselves may be of extensible form (now shown) to facilitate an increased forward extension of the seat section 13 relative to the base frame 10. As a further possibility the legs (not shown) to support the front of the seat section may be provided on side frame members 21c (FIG. 1) at the lateral edges of the seat section. These side frame members may carry retractible legs (not shown).

As is best seen in FIGS. 2 and 5, the cushion 16 is of a length equal or slightly less than that of the seat'section 13, and in the seating configuration (FIG. 2) the rear end of the cushion 16 lies underneath the lower end of the cushion 17. All three cushions are of'substantially uniform thickness, the cushion 17 being shorter in length than the back-rest section 14 by approximately half that thickness, and the cushion 18 being greater in length than the corresponding rear section by a corresponding amount. The rear edge of the cushion 18 is supported on a ledge 25 at the bottom of the rear section 15 and all three cushions may be interconnected at adjacent edges for convenience in han dling, for example connection 26 is provided between adjacent'edges of the cushion.l7 and 18 whilst a web of upholstery material (not shown) may provide a connection between the cushions l6 and -17. At least the back-rest cushion 17 is movable relative to the corresponding section 14 of the convertible means so that in the bedding configuration as shown in FIG. 5 the three cushion sections are in abutting end-to-end relationship, the combined lengths of the three cushions being equal to the combined lengths of the sections of the convertible means. The hollow space between the back-rest section 14 and the rear section 15 in the seating configuration is covered by a triangular gusset 14a (FIG. 1) at each end of the sofa bed. Each gusset covers this space above the level of the arm 12, and is preferably detachably mounted and covered with matching upholstery material.

The base frame 10 is a box-like structure conveniently fabricated in plywood sections which can readily be disassembled for transportion or storage.

The base frame (see FIGS. 2 and 5 to 7) comprises two vertical and sections 29 which are joined by a transverse inclined front wall 30 and a rear wall 31. The base frame also includes a bottom panel (FIGS. 2 and 6) arranged horizontally with its edges received in grooves (not shown) formed close to the bottom of the end sections and the front and rear walls. A dowel rod (not shown) extending between opposite sides of the base frame on the underside of the bottom panel may be provided to support the latter. The bottom panel in addition to adding to the rigidity of the base frame structure also enables the space within the base frame to be used for storage purposes.

As is best seen in FIGS. 5 and 7, each end section has inclined front and rear edges and a substantially horizontal upper edge, the bottom of the end section being relieved, as at 23 (FIG. 2) to define foot portions at the front and rear thereof.

Each end section 29 of the base 10 is provided with a notch 29a at its forward end positioned to receive the dowelling rod 21a on the stringers 21 when the sofa bed is in the bedding configuration, and to retain the front end of the seat section 13 from upward displacement in this configuration. The upper edge 29b of each end section of the base is convexly curved, and at its rear end defines a notch 29c to engage and locate the dowelling rod 21b of the stringer 21 when the sofa bed is in the seating configuration (see FIGS. 2 and 3).

At its rear upper edge, each end section 29 carries a curved lug 33 which provides a pivotal connection for the rear section 15 of the seating and bedding means on the base 10. This is best seen in FIG. 3 wherein the rear section 15 is shown in full lines in the position assumed when the sofa bed is in seating configuration and in brokenlines in the position assumed when the sofa bed is in bedding configuration. The lug 33 is defined by a small curved recess 34 at the rear of the end section 29, and by a curved surface 35 extending upwards from the rear edge of the end section. Each lug 33 cooperates with a corresponding rectangular slot 36 in the rear planar section 15, and as shown in broken lines in FIG. 3, the length of the slot 36 is greater than the length of the upper end of the lug 33 so that when the rear section 15 is in the horizontal position (the bedding configuration) it may be lifted to disengage the lug from the slot. However the width of the lug 33 increases downwardly from its free end, so that when the rear section 15 is in a generally upright position (i.e., the seating configuration) as indicated in full lines in FIG. 3, the lug 33 cannot be disengaged from the slot 36. It will be seen therefore that the lug 33 and slots 36 cooperate to provide a pivotal support for the seating and bedding means on the base, which can only be disengaged when the rear section 15 is in substantially horizontal position. Alternative means may be provided to pivot the rear section 15 on the base. For example, pivot rods (not shown) may be mounted on the underside of the rear section to co-operate with pivot recesses such as 34 on the base frame.

As will also be evident from FIG. 3, when the sofa bed is in the seating configuration, the rear end 24 of each stringer 21 projects alongside the lug 33 through an extension 36a (see FIG. 7) in the notch 36 in the rear section 15. This enables the length of the stringers to be increased, and also secures the back-rest section 14 against lifting should a person seated on the sofabed lean back forcibly against the upper portion of the back rest. I

As is shown in FIG. 6 and 7, the front wall of the base 10 is disposed at a forward inclination, the upper edge 37 being positioned somewhat below the upper edges 29b of'the end sections 29. The rear wall 31 of the base is disposed at a rearwards inclination, and the front and rear walls of the base are of a length substantially less than the width of the convertible seating and bedding means 11 as is evident from FIG. 6.

The base frame 10 may be fabricated in any suitable manner, but for convenience in manufacturing and storage, it is perferably fabricated from plywood panels which are arranged to connect together without the use of fasteners. To this end, each of the front and rear wa1ls'30 and 31 is preferablyprovided at each end with a pair of laterally extending lugs 30a and 31a respectively for engagement with notches 32 in the end walls 29 of the base. The lugs 30a and 31a have rounded noses of a height corresponding the height of the notches 32, but are undercut, so that once a pair of lugs 30a, 310, has been inserted through the registering notches 32, the corresponding front or rear wall 30, 31, may be moved downwardly so that the lugs register over the lower ends of the slots 32 so that lateral movementwill not disengage the lugs from the slots. To further secure the engagement between the end walls, and the front and rear walls of the base, each pair of the notches 32 may be given a slight misalignment with respect to each other. For example, referring to the left hand end of FIG. 5, the upper of the two notches 32 is slightly displaced, in a counterclockwise sense, from alignment with the lower of the two notches so that when the lower notch and lug are registered, a slight flexture of the rear wall 31 is necessary to bring the upper lug and notch into alignment. Upon interengagement of the thus registered lugs and notches, and downwards displacement of the rear wall 31 to engage over the lower edges of the notches, the upper lug 31a becomes registered with a lateral extension of the upper slot 32 which defines a shoulder 32a. When released, the stress applied to the rear wall 31 causes the upper lug 32 to move into engagement with the shoulder 32a, and this engagement is effective to prevent accidental upward movement of the lugs 31a with respect to the slots, so that these are effectively retained in their interengaged condition.

Each of the end walls 29 of the base also carries two pairs of vertically aligned, generally rectangular slots 32b for mounting of the arms.12 to the base. To facilitate this mounting of the arms, each of the slots 32b has a widened central portion, and an inclined guide plate 320 (see FIGS. 5 and 7) is mounted adjacent to each pair of slots 32b.

Each of the arms 12 of the sofa bed carries a supporting structure 38 for detachably mounting the arm to the base frame 10.

The supporting structure 38 comprises a pair of spaced upright panels 39 (one is shown in FIG. 4) which register with the pairs of slots 32b in the end walls 29 of the base. The panels 39 are interconnected and braced by a horizontally diposed spacing panel (not shown). Each upright panel 39 has a vertical edge from which projects a pair of round nosed lugs 41a, 41b at a vertical spacing corresponding to that of the notches 32b in the end wall 29. The lower lug 41b is undercut, and has a nose the vertical height of which is only slightly smaller than that of the lower slot 32b. The upper lug 41a has a nose portion corresponding in height to that of the upper slot 32b. The supporting structure 38 is designed such that the arms can only be detached from the sofa bed when the latter is in the bedding configuration. Thus, as will be seen from FIG. 4, when the sofa bed is in the seating configuration, the arm 12 is retained in position by the stringer 21 which I is received in a notch defined between the nose portion of the upper lug 41a and the vertical edge of the upright panel 39, and blocks the lug 41a against withdrawal through the slot 32b. When the sofa bed is in the bedding'configuration, the stringer 21 no longer performs this blocking function, since in this configuration, as will be seen from FIG. 5, the stringer is displaced forwardly of both pairs of slots 32b. The supporting structure 38 is itself attached to the arm 12 by a lug and slot arrangement similar to the interconnection between the walls of the base frame 10.

To attach the arm 12 to a base frame, it is moved in a lateral direction towards the end wall 29, to present the lugs 41a,41b for engagement with the slots 32b. Because of the lateral overhang of the seating and bedding means 11 above the base frame 10, visibility during this operation is limited, and to assist the attachment of the arms, the angled guide plates 32c are designed to engage the upper lugs 41a and guide them towards the upper slots 32b. Entry of these lugs into the slots is further facilitated by the cooperation of the rounded noses of the lugs 41a, and the widened central portions of the upper slots 32b.

As will be evident from the foregoing description, when the sofa bed is in the seating configuration, the seat section 13 is supported at a slight, preferably adjustable, rearward inclination upon the base frame, and is retained in this position by engagement of the dowelling rods 21a, 21b, with the corresponding notches 29a, 29c, in the end walls 29 of the base. To convert the sofa bed to the bedding configuration, the front portion of the seat section 13 is grasped, lifted slightly to disengage notches 21d (FIG. 5) from engagement over the upper edge of the front wall 30 of the base, and moved forward slightly to disengage the dowelling rod 21a from the notch 29c, where upon this section may be extended forwardly of the base frame to the fully ex tended position as shown in FIG. 5. During this forward movement, the back-rest section 14 pivots downwardly about the axis 19, and the rear section 15 pivots downwardly on the lugs 33, until all three sections are substantially horizontal. In this configuration, the board 22 forms a support for the forward most edge of the seat section 13.

It should be noted that as shown in FIG. 5, the pivot axis 19 is extended a considerable distance beyond the front of the base frame, and the forward portion of the back-rest section 14 takes support upon the extended rear ends 24 of the stringers 21, which in turn rest upon the upper end 37 of the front wall 30 of the base frame. ln movement from the seating to the bedding configuration, as will be evident from a consideration of FIGS. 2 and 5,'the back-rest section cushion 17 moves forwardly-by an amount equal to the cushion thickness to a position abutting the seat cushion 16. In the hori' zontal position, therear cushion 18 also projects slightly overthe back-rest section 14 so that the three cushions togetherform-a substantially continuous surface. In movement to the seating configuration, since the .rear cushion extends beyond the pivot axis 20, this cushion is effective to raise the back-rest cushion by an amount sufficient to permit the rear of the seat cushion to move'under the lower edge of the back-rest cushion to the position shown in FIG. 2.

Means are preferably provided to attach the arms in abutting relationship along the ledge 25 when the sofa bed is in the bedding configuration, thus to form a headboard structure for the bed. It will be appreciated that with this arrangement, the appearance of the sofa bed bears no resemblance to a sofa, but rather is that of a normal bed.

These means comprises a shoulder or notch 40 (FIG. 4) on the arm support structure 38 which co-operates with a lip in the form of a series of strips 65 (FIG. 7) on the underside of the rear portion of the seatingand-bedding means. Each strip 65 has an inclined lower surface (not shown) which guides the notch 40 of the arm into engagement therewith when the arm is moved into the headboard position from the rear. Gaps 66 (FIG. 7) are provided between the strips 65, and to remove the arm from the headboard position it is only necessary to displace the arm transversely to register each of the notches 40 with a gap 66, whereupon the arm can be withdrawn rearwardly without interference from the strips 65.

To restore the sofa bed from the bedding to the seating configuration, it is evident that the pivot axis must be raised from the position shown in FIG. 5, and the seat section 13 moved rearwardly until the rod 21a re-engages the notches 29a in the end walls 29. However this movement cannot be accomplished simply by pushing rearwardly at the front of the extended seat section 13, although it is clearly desirable that the movement should take place solely as a result of manipulation of this portion. Accordingly I provide means to initiate the slight upward movements of the pivot axis 20. This means comprises a pair of flexible tensile elemerits-in the form of cords 43 (FIGS. 5 and 7) each of which has one end anchored at an intermediate location 44 in a side frame member 210, and the other end anchored at a point 55 on the rear section 15. The ends of the cords are simply knotted and engaged in tapered or keyhole" slots at their anchor points. Between its ends each cord passes in generally taut condition through guide holes 46 and 47 in the front and rear walls respectively of the base frame. The guide holes 46 and 47 are smooth edged and may include means (not shown) to reduce frictional engagement with the cord 43. 1

Referring to FIG. 5, it will be clear that if the front portion of the seat section 13 is lifted slightly, this movement will be transmitted through the cords 43, and will produce a corresponding downward movement of the rearmost end of the section 15. This movement is sufficient to initiate the upward movement of the pivot axis 20, and thereafter the sofa bed may be restored to the seating configuration by only a moderate rearward force applied to the front of the seat section 13.

The position of the anchor point 44 of the cords 43 along the length of the side frame member 21c is carefully selected so that when the sofa bed is in seating configuration, no slack length of cord 43.hangs from the base frame. Instead, slack produced by movement of the rear section 11 between its two positions is taken up by movement of the anchor points 44 rearwardly of the upper edge 37, so that the cords 43 extend upwardly on the front face of the front wall 30, and rearwardly from the upper edge 37 to the anchor points 44.

Alternative means may be provided to initiate the upward movement of the pivot axis 20 to assist restoration of the sofa bed to the seating configuration. Such means may comprise an eccentric or cam (not shown) mounted on the base 10 and rotatable through a flexible element which can be manipulated from the front end of the seat section 13 to initiate the upward movement of the pivot axis. A further possibility would be the provision of a spring element (not shown) on the base to urge the pivot axis 20 upwardly and releasable latch means to control the operation of the spring element. As a further alternative the sofa bed could be arranged such that in the bedding configuration the rear section and back-rest section are not coplanar but lie at a slight mutual inclination. In this case the cushion sections 18 and 17 would be of tapered form so as to present co-planar horizontal surfaces in the bedding configuration.

To assist restoration of the sofa bed to the seating configuration, counterbalance means may be provided. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, these means may comprise a tension spring 48 anchored as at 49 on the front wall 30 of the base frame and each connected at its opposite end as at 50 to the rear section 15 close to the ledge 25. The spring 48 is arranged to be extended when the sofa bed is moved to its bedding configuration, so that it as sists restoration to the seating configuration. However the spring does not require to have sufficient force to accomplish by itself the restoration movement, since this movement is of course initiated by means of the cords 43. r

In designing a sofa bed of the type described above, some care must be taken in selection of the lengths of the three sections of the convertible means, and in the selection of the thickness and arrangement of the corresponding cushions. For example bearing in mind that the combined lengths of the three sections of convertible means must provide an acceptable bed length, usually 72 inches, or 78 inches it is important that the rear section 15 is pivoted not at its lowermost end upon the base frame, but, as illustrated, at a point intermediate its ends. If the rear section 15 were pivoted at its lowermost end to the base frame, then to arrive at an acceptable combined length for the three sections, in the seating configuration of the sofa bed, either the junction of the back-rest and rear sections at the axis 26 will be so high as to detract from the appearance of the sofa, or

9 axis 28 and the ledge 25 represent about 10 percent of the combined length of the three sections, and the individual sections represent approximately the following percentages of the combinedlength:

seat section 35 percent;

back-rest section 25 percent;

rear section 40 percent. For example utilizing cushions of a thickness of approximately 4 inches, an acceptable combined length of at least about 72 inches can be achieved where the lengths of the sections are as follows:

seat section 23 to 25 inches;

back-rest section 17 to 18 inches; and

rear section 29 to 32 inches.

It should be noted that in the seating configuration,

the back-rest section and rear section together constitute the back support of the sofa, although neither part is fixed relative to the base frame. The only connection to the base frame is through the pivotal connection 28 of the rear section and the engagement of the dowelling rods 21a, 21b or the seat section.

The hollow space within the base frame 10 may be utilized for the storage of bedding but in an alternative, preferred arrangement (not shown) the rear cushion section 18 is provided with means for storing bedding in a manner such that it is readily accessible for use. To this end, the rear cushion section 18 may be provided with a large flat pouch (not shown) on its outer major surface, of a size co-extensive with that surface. The pouch may have a large cover flap detachably secured along its two vertical edges and its'lower horizontal edge to the cushion l8, e.g., by means of a slide fastener. The bedding can be stored within the pouch folded into a relatively thin layer. When the sofa bed is in bedding configuration the cover flap of the pouch can be unfastened, folded about the remaining edge,

adjacent the pivot axis 20, and spread on top of the back-rest and seat cushions l7 and 16. The bedding may then be unfolded and spread over the horizontal cushions. To prevent soiling of the upholstery when the sofa bed is used a a bed, the flap of the pouch is preferably impermeable to moisture. However, the outer surface of the cover flap is preferably finished in a material which matches that of the covers of the cushions l6 and 17.

Where the back-rest and rear sections 14, 15 are of relatively rigid construction, e.g., where these are made from plywood sheets, the bed may be found uncomfortably firm or hard by some people, even where the cushions, which are of sponge-like material, are of 4 inches or more in thickness. To alleviate this difficulty, instead of providing cushions of homogenous composition, I may employ cushions of composite construction having a resilient, relatively soft upper layer and one or more lower layers of different stiffness. With such arrangements it is possible to produce a cushion which, for the same thickness, feels much softer than one of homogenous composition. By superimposing a soft layer on one or more relatively harder layers the cushion does not bottom on the rigid supporting panel and this pro- I duces an apparently greater softness.

The sofa-bed may be manufactured in any convenient width. However I prefer to provide a sofa-bed unit having a seat width corresponding to that of an armchair, and to make provision for coupling two or more such units in side-by-side relationship to provide a sofa-bed of increased width. Any suitable coupling means may be provided for this purpose. In the embodiment illustrated, the coupling means comprises a specially shaped connector element 60 (FIG. 8) adapted to engage apertures 61 in the side frame members 21c (FIGS. 1 and 9) of adjacent sofa bed units. The connector 60 has a pair of spaced tapered nothces 62 on each side thereof, the notches being of a tapering width corresponding to the thickness of the side frame members 210. Each aperture 61 has a wide central portion 61a and central shoulders 61b on its upper and lower sides. To interconnect two adjacent sofa-bed units the connector 60 is inserted through the aligned apertures 61 in a horizontal fashion as shown in broken lines in FIG. 9 to align the notches 62 with the side frame members 21c. Thereafter the connector is rotated in the direction of the arrows in FIG. 9 to engage the notches wedgingly over the side frame members with the connector abutting the shoulders 61b as shown in full lines in FIG. 9. In this simple manner the adjacent units may be interconnected quickly and securely.

The interconnection described above is between the movable seat sections 13 of the adjacent sofa-bed units, and accordingly couples the seating-and-bedding means for movement in unison between the seating and bedding configurations. If desired, a further connector means may be provided to couple the base frames of the units, and this may comprise a pair of planar stiffener plates (not shown) each having at opposite vertical edges a pair of spaced lugs, similar to the lugs 41b of the arm support structure 38, adapted to engage in the pairs of slots 32b in the adjacent end walls 29 of the base frames. A further bracing board (not shown) may be provided to be wedged in a substantially horizontal position between the stiffening plates to further strengthen and brace the connection.

As will be seen from FIG. 1, the webbed panel 13a of the seat section 13 includes no rigid frame members at its lateral edges, so that when two such sofa-bed units are connected together as described above, the seat of the combined sofa-bed contains no uncomfortably hard area at its mid-point, as would exist if the panels 13a included rigid frame members at their lateral edges.

The basic design of bed chesterfield described in the foregoing is also applicable to the manufacture of garden furniture. In this application the cushion sections 16, 17, 18 and other upholstered portions may be omitted and simple wooden arms provided.

The sofa-bed could also be designed for use as a bed in which the width of the sofa-bed provides the length of the bed. In this case the combined lengths of the sections 13, 14 and 15 may be reduced since this combined length now represents the width of the bed. Thus, the lengths of the back-rest and rear sections 14 and 15 may be reduced significantly so that in the seating configuration the sofa-bed has a much lower back height than the one illustrated.

' formed integrally with each stringer.

the bedding configuratiom said rear section being pivotally supported intermediate its length on said base such that in the seating configuration a portion of said rear section extends downwardly beyond said pivotal support.

2. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim -1 further comprising three cushion sections corresponding to respective ones of said three sections of the seating and bedding 'means,'said cushion sections being of generally uniform thickness and having a combined length equal to that of the three sections of the seating and bedding means, at least the cushion sections corresponding to said rear and backrest sections being interconnected.

' 3. A sofa bed according to claim 2 wherein the seat cushion section has a length which is approximately equal to that of said seat section, the back-rest and rear 10. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 8 wherein each stringer is of extensible form.

11. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein each stringer is of a length substantially greater than the front-to-back length of the seat section, and in the seating configuration extends rearwards through an apercushion sections each being greater in length than the 7 corresponding back-rest and rear sections by approximately half said uniform thickness, said back-rest cushion section-being movable relative to said back-rest section and being interconnected to said rear cushion section through adjacent lower edges.

4. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said seat section is supported on two spaced parallel stringers extending from front to rear on its underside, said stringers being slidably supported on the base of the sofa-bed to accommodate movement between the seating and bedding configurations, said stringers each having a rear end which, in the bedding configuration, extends rearwardly beyond the rear edge of the seat section whereby the rear end of each stringer rest upon the base and the pivotal connection-of the seat and backrest sections is supported by the stringers at a location spaced forwardly from the front of the base.

' 5. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein each stringer is of tapered form from front to rear such that, in the seating configuration the seat section is supported at a slight upwards inclination towards the front,

and in the bedding configuration the seat section is substantially horizontal.

' 6. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 5 including disengageable retainer means operable between said stringers and said base to prevent accidental movement of saidseat section out of the seating configuration,

'7.'A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 5 wherein said foot means comprises a transverse planar member disposed generally vertically at the front of the seat section, said planar member being adapted to engage the floor to support the front of the seat section when in the bedding configuration and being raised from the floor due to the tapered form of the stringers when in seating configuration.

8. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein said foot means comprises a pair of spaced legs, one leg being 9. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein said foot means comprises a pair of spaced retractable legs, one "being mounted adjacent each stringer.

ture in the rear section to restrain upwards movement of said rear section out of engagement with its pivotal support on the base.

12. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein said base is of box-like construction and defines a storage chamber, said seat section including a large displaceable panel providing access to said storage area, said panel having opposite lateral edges spaced above frame members extending along the lateral edges of the seat section.

13. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 12 wherein each side of the base includes means adapted to be engaged by a coupling means whereby two such sofa-beds can be interconnected in side-by-side arrangement.

14. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 including lifting means operable, when the sofa-bed is in bedding configuration with the three sections substantially horizontal, to initiate upwards movement of the pivotal connection between the rear section and the back-rest section, enabling the sofa-bed thereafter to be restored to the seating configuration solely by a generally horizontally directed force applied to the seat section.

15.'A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 14 wherein said lifting means comprises a flexible linkage guided through said base and connected at one end of said rear section, at a location rearwards of the pivotal support of the rear section on the base, and at the other end to a forward part of the seat section, whereby raising of the front of the seat section transmits a force through said linkage to pivot said rear section with respect to said base and initiate said upwards movement.

16. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 14 wherein said lifting means comprises a latchable spring-loaded element on said base releasable by means of a remote actuator to initiate said upwards movement.

17. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said base includes means to support said back-rest and rear sections in the bedding configuration each at a slight inclination to the horizontal, so that these sections are mutually inclined and the sofa-bed can be restored to the seating configuration by a generally horizontally directed force applied to the seat section.

18. A. sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said base includes means to support said back-rest and rear sections in the bedding configuration each at a slight inclination to the horizontal, so that these sections are mutually inclined and the sofa-bed can be restored to the seating configuration by a generally horizontally directed force applied to the seat section, and further comprising three interconnected cushion section corresponding to respective ones of said rear, back-rest and seating sections, the three cushion sections being of generally uniform thickness but the rear and back-rest cushion sections tapering somewhat towards each other so that in the bedding configuration the horizontal upper surfaces of the three cushion sections are generally co-planar.

19. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said rear section is pivotally supported on said base upon freely separable pivot means.

20. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 19 wherein said pivot means comprises a rod member mounted on said rear section which cooperates with a U-shaped recess in said base.

21. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 19 wherein said separable pivot means comprises at each end of said base a rearwardly projecting lug having a U-shaped recess, said lug extending through a complementary aperture in said planar rear section and said recess cooperating with one end of said recess to form said pivot means.

22. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 21 wherein said lug has a generally horizontal free end to the rear of said recess, the width of the lug, in the direction perpendicular to the pivot axis, increasing progressively from the free end, said complementary aperture in the planar rear section having a length less than the sum of the depth of the recess and the width of the lug where it passes through the aperture when the rear section is in the upright seating configuration, such that in that configuration the rear section cannot be disengaged from the lug. I

23. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 22 wherein in the bedding configuration when the planar rear section is generally horizontal the free end of the lug still projects into said aperture thus locating the rear section in the horizontal plane while still permitting disengagement of the pivot means by lifting of the rear section.

24. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 further comprising arms at opposite lateral ends of base and releasbly engageable with the base.

25. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein each arm has an inboard side from which extend vertically spaced hook-like protrusions, insertable through, and engageable with complementary apertures in an end wall of the base.

26. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 25 further comprising retaining means mounted to move with said seat section and operable when the seat section is in the seating configuration to block said protrusions to prevent removal of said arms, said retaining means being rendered inoperable upon movement of the seat section to the bedding configuration.

27. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 26 wherein said retaining means comprises a forwardly extending elongated stringer mounted on the underside of the seat section and which registers in a vertical groove in a portion of one of said protrusions when the seat section is in the seating configuration thus preventing removal of the arm.

28. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein said arms and said rear section include complementary members interengageable when the sofa-bed is in the bedding configuration to locate said arms at the back of the rear section in the form of a headboard.

29. A sofa-bed asclaimed in claim 25 wherein said protrusions are provided on a mounting structure detachably secured to the inboard side of said arm.

30. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein said arm is of laminated construction comprising adjacent layers of lightweight foamed plastics material and at least one stiffening panel of substantially rigid material, which are cemented together and devoid of metal fasteners so that the arm may readily be formed by sawing to any desired outline.

31. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 30 wherein said arm has a large groove extending longitudinally in at least one peripheral edge surface thereof, and a barshaped plug adapted to be inserted in said groove to frictionally engage and retain in said groove the end portions of upholstery material .spread over said arm.

32. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein each arm has a laterally extending structure on which are provided protrusions for engagement of the arm with end walls of said base, said structure having an upper surface provided with a notch positioned and adapted for engagement with a transverse lip on the underside of the rear section of the convertible seating and bedding means, whereby the arms can be positioned transversely at the back of the rear section in bedding configuration in the manner of a headboard and located by engagement of said notches with said lip.

33. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 32 wherein said lip has an inclined cam surface on its underside operative to guide engagement of said notch with said lip to permit placement of the arms in headboard position by movement of said laterally extending structure in the back-to-front direction, said lip including discontinuities whereby said arm can be disengaged by transverse movement of the arm to register said notch with a discontinuity, and subsequent rearwards movement of the arm.

34. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 26 wherein the configuration of said protrusions is such that the disengage said arm from said base the arm must first be tilted in one direction to withdraw one protrusion from its complementary aperture, and subsequently tilted in the opposite direction to withdraw the other protrusion.

35. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein said base is ofbox-like form and comprises upwardly extending front, rear, and opposite end walls detachably interconnected, and a planar horizontal bottom received and supported at its edges in grooves in at least an opposed pair of said walls.

36. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 35 wherein the walls and other parts of the base are of interlocking form and can be interconnected without requiring any additional fasteners.

37. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 36 wherein the base when erected said front and rear walls extend at an inclination to the upright and diverge upwardly, said front and rear walls each having at opposite ends a plurality of hook-like protrusions adapted to extend through and engage over and end of a respective one of a plurality of corresponding slot-like apertures in each of said end walls.

38. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 37 wherein each end of said front and rear walls has two spaced hooklike protrusions aligned in the plane of said wall, said front or rear' wall being engageable with said end wall by insertion of said protrusions laterally through said corresponding two apertures and movement of the front or rear wall downwardly to engage said hook-like protrusions over the lower ends of said apertures, and wherein disengageable detent means in one of said apertures is operative to block removal of one of said protrusions from its corresponding aperture.

39. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 38 wherein said one aperture comprises first and second portions respectively aligned and non-aligned with the other of said two apertures, said detent means comprising a step between said two portions, said first portion corresponding to the position occupied by said one protrusion when fully engaged with said one aperture, and

said front or rear wall being resiliently deformable to move said one protrusion into register with said second portion of said one aperture to permit movement of the protrusion longitudinally of said one aperture to a position where it can be disengaged from the aperture.

40. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 12 wherein said base includes end walls and further comprising means engageable with respective end walls of two such sofabeds arranged in side-by-side relation to interconnect said two sofa beds.

41. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 15 further comprising resilient restoring means operative to apply a force to said rear section in a direction urging the latter towards its upright position. 

1. A sofa-bed comprising a base, and convertible seating and bedding means including three generally planar sections supported on said base and comprising a back-rest section pivotally connected at opposite transverse edges to a seat section and rear section respectively, a support member mounted on the underside of said seat section and slidable upon said base, said support member having a rear end which extends rearwardly of said seat section, said convertible means being movable on said base between a seating configuration, in which the seat section is generally horizontal, the back-rest section extends upwardly at a slight rearward inclination and the rear section is generally upright, and a bedding configuration in which the tHree sections are generally horizontal and said seat section extends forwardly of said base, said seat section support member resting upon said base in both configurations wherein said seat section includes foot means to support the front portion thereof upon a floor when in the bedding configuration, said rear section being pivotally supported intermediate its length on said base such that in the seating configuration a portion of said rear section extends downwardly beyond said pivotal support.
 2. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 further comprising three cushion sections corresponding to respective ones of said three sections of the seating and bedding means, said cushion sections being of generally uniform thickness and having a combined length equal to that of the three sections of the seating and bedding means, at least the cushion sections corresponding to said rear and backrest sections being interconnected.
 3. A sofa bed according to claim 2 wherein the seat cushion section has a length which is approximately equal to that of said seat section, the back-rest and rear cushion sections each being greater in length than the corresponding back-rest and rear sections by approximately half said uniform thickness, said back-rest cushion section being movable relative to said back-rest section and being interconnected to said rear cushion section through adjacent lower edges.
 4. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said seat section is supported on two spaced parallel stringers extending from front to rear on its underside, said stringers being slidably supported on the base of the sofa-bed to accommodate movement between the seating and bedding configurations, said stringers each having a rear end which, in the bedding configuration, extends rearwardly beyond the rear edge of the seat section whereby the rear end of each stringer rest upon the base and the pivotal connection of the seat and back-rest sections is supported by the stringers at a location spaced forwardly from the front of the base.
 5. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein each stringer is of tapered form from front to rear such that, in the seating configuration the seat section is supported at a slight upwards inclination towards the front, and in the bedding configuration the seat section is substantially horizontal.
 6. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 5 including disengageable retainer means operable between said stringers and said base to prevent accidental movement of said seat section out of the seating configuration.
 7. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 5 wherein said foot means comprises a transverse planar member disposed generally vertically at the front of the seat section, said planar member being adapted to engage the floor to support the front of the seat section when in the bedding configuration and being raised from the floor due to the tapered form of the stringers when in seating configuration.
 8. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein said foot means comprises a pair of spaced legs, one leg being formed integrally with each stringer.
 9. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein said foot means comprises a pair of spaced retractable legs, one being mounted adjacent each stringer.
 10. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 8 wherein each stringer is of extensible form.
 11. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein each stringer is of a length substantially greater than the front-to-back length of the seat section, and in the seating configuration extends rearwards through an aperture in the rear section to restrain upwards movement of said rear section out of engagement with its pivotal support on the base.
 12. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 4 wherein said base is of box-like construction and defines a storage chamber, said seat section including a large displaceable panel providing access to said storage area, said panel having opposite lateral edges spaced above frame members extending along the lateral edges of the seat section.
 13. A sofa-bed as claimed in clAim 12 wherein each side of the base includes means adapted to be engaged by a coupling means whereby two such sofa-beds can be interconnected in side-by-side arrangement.
 14. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 including lifting means operable, when the sofa-bed is in bedding configuration with the three sections substantially horizontal, to initiate upwards movement of the pivotal connection between the rear section and the back-rest section, enabling the sofa-bed thereafter to be restored to the seating configuration solely by a generally horizontally directed force applied to the seat section.
 15. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 14 wherein said lifting means comprises a flexible linkage guided through said base and connected at one end of said rear section, at a location rearwards of the pivotal support of the rear section on the base, and at the other end to a forward part of the seat section, whereby raising of the front of the seat section transmits a force through said linkage to pivot said rear section with respect to said base and initiate said upwards movement.
 16. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 14 wherein said lifting means comprises a latchable spring-loaded element on said base releasable by means of a remote actuator to initiate said upwards movement.
 17. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said base includes means to support said back-rest and rear sections in the bedding configuration each at a slight inclination to the horizontal, so that these sections are mutually inclined and the sofa-bed can be restored to the seating configuration by a generally horizontally directed force applied to the seat section.
 18. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said base includes means to support said back-rest and rear sections in the bedding configuration each at a slight inclination to the horizontal, so that these sections are mutually inclined and the sofa-bed can be restored to the seating configuration by a generally horizontally directed force applied to the seat section, and further comprising three interconnected cushion section corresponding to respective ones of said rear, back-rest and seating sections, the three cushion sections being of generally uniform thickness but the rear and back-rest cushion sections tapering somewhat towards each other so that in the bedding configuration the horizontal upper surfaces of the three cushion sections are generally co-planar.
 19. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said rear section is pivotally supported on said base upon freely separable pivot means.
 20. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 19 wherein said pivot means comprises a rod member mounted on said rear section which cooperates with a U-shaped recess in said base.
 21. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 19 wherein said separable pivot means comprises at each end of said base a rearwardly projecting lug having a U-shaped recess, said lug extending through a complementary aperture in said planar rear section and said recess cooperating with one end of said recess to form said pivot means.
 22. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 21 wherein said lug has a generally horizontal free end to the rear of said recess, the width of the lug, in the direction perpendicular to the pivot axis, increasing progressively from the free end, said complementary aperture in the planar rear section having a length less than the sum of the depth of the recess and the width of the lug where it passes through the aperture when the rear section is in the upright seating configuration, such that in that configuration the rear section cannot be disengaged from the lug.
 23. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 22 wherein in the bedding configuration when the planar rear section is generally horizontal the free end of the lug still projects into said aperture thus locating the rear section in the horizontal plane while still permitting disengagement of the pivot means by lifting of the rear section.
 24. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 further comprising arms at opposite lAteral ends of base and releasbly engageable with the base.
 25. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein each arm has an inboard side from which extend vertically spaced hook-like protrusions, insertable through, and engageable with complementary apertures in an end wall of the base.
 26. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 25 further comprising retaining means mounted to move with said seat section and operable when the seat section is in the seating configuration to block said protrusions to prevent removal of said arms, said retaining means being rendered inoperable upon movement of the seat section to the bedding configuration.
 27. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 26 wherein said retaining means comprises a forwardly extending elongated stringer mounted on the underside of the seat section and which registers in a vertical groove in a portion of one of said protrusions when the seat section is in the seating configuration thus preventing removal of the arm.
 28. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein said arms and said rear section include complementary members interengageable when the sofa-bed is in the bedding configuration to locate said arms at the back of the rear section in the form of a headboard.
 29. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 25 wherein said protrusions are provided on a mounting structure detachably secured to the inboard side of said arm.
 30. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein said arm is of laminated construction comprising adjacent layers of lightweight foamed plastics material and at least one stiffening panel of substantially rigid material, which are cemented together and devoid of metal fasteners so that the arm may readily be formed by sawing to any desired outline.
 31. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 30 wherein said arm has a large groove extending longitudinally in at least one peripheral edge surface thereof, and a bar-shaped plug adapted to be inserted in said groove to frictionally engage and retain in said groove the end portions of upholstery material spread over said arm.
 32. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein each arm has a laterally extending structure on which are provided protrusions for engagement of the arm with end walls of said base, said structure having an upper surface provided with a notch positioned and adapted for engagement with a transverse lip on the underside of the rear section of the convertible seating and bedding means, whereby the arms can be positioned transversely at the back of the rear section in bedding configuration in the manner of a headboard and located by engagement of said notches with said lip.
 33. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 32 wherein said lip has an inclined cam surface on its underside operative to guide engagement of said notch with said lip to permit placement of the arms in headboard position by movement of said laterally extending structure in the back-to-front direction, said lip including discontinuities whereby said arm can be disengaged by transverse movement of the arm to register said notch with a discontinuity, and subsequent rearwards movement of the arm.
 34. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 26 wherein the configuration of said protrusions is such that the disengage said arm from said base the arm must first be tilted in one direction to withdraw one protrusion from its complementary aperture, and subsequently tilted in the opposite direction to withdraw the other protrusion.
 35. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 24 wherein said base is of box-like form and comprises upwardly extending front, rear, and opposite end walls detachably interconnected, and a planar horizontal bottom received and supported at its edges in grooves in at least an opposed pair of said walls.
 36. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 35 wherein the walls and other parts of the base are of interlocking form and can be interconnected without requiring any additional fasteners.
 37. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 36 wherein the base when erected said front and rear walls extend at an Inclination to the upright and diverge upwardly, said front and rear walls each having at opposite ends a plurality of hook-like protrusions adapted to extend through and engage over and end of a respective one of a plurality of corresponding slot-like apertures in each of said end walls.
 38. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 37 wherein each end of said front and rear walls has two spaced hook-like protrusions aligned in the plane of said wall, said front or rear wall being engageable with said end wall by insertion of said protrusions laterally through said corresponding two apertures and movement of the front or rear wall downwardly to engage said hook-like protrusions over the lower ends of said apertures, and wherein disengageable detent means in one of said apertures is operative to block removal of one of said protrusions from its corresponding aperture.
 39. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 38 wherein said one aperture comprises first and second portions respectively aligned and non-aligned with the other of said two apertures, said detent means comprising a step between said two portions, said first portion corresponding to the position occupied by said one protrusion when fully engaged with said one aperture, and said front or rear wall being resiliently deformable to move said one protrusion into register with said second portion of said one aperture to permit movement of the protrusion longitudinally of said one aperture to a position where it can be disengaged from the aperture.
 40. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 12 wherein said base includes end walls and further comprising means engageable with respective end walls of two such sofa-beds arranged in side-by-side relation to interconnect said two sofa beds.
 41. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 15 further comprising resilient restoring means operative to apply a force to said rear section in a direction urging the latter towards its upright position.
 42. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 further comprising disengageable means operative to retain and convertible seating and bedding means in its seating configuration.
 43. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said portion of the rear section extending beyond the pivotal support represents about 10% of the combined length of the rear, backrest and seating sections.
 44. A sofa-bed as claimed in claim 43 wherein the lengths of said three sections expressed as a percentage of said combined length are approximately: seat section, 35 percent; back-rest section, 25 percent; rear section 40 percent. 